Ray McCanna, member of Spokane’s top horse-racing family and Playfair fixture, dies at 64

Ray McCanna, a member of Spokane’s top horse-racing family of the last half-century, died Oct. 7, in Port Ludlow, Wash., where he made his home. He was 64.

Following in the footsteps of his grandfather and father, McCanna trained horses for only a few years. But he continued to own winning thoroughbreds, trained by his brother, Tim, for the rest of his life. Four times, he finished among the training leaders at Playfair Race Course, the local track that operated until 1999.

Their grandfather, William “Pappy” McCanna,” and father, Dan, were trainers before them. Dan McCanna, 89, retired years ago to a ranch near Creston. Dan’s other son, known as Boone, operates a nearby spread for retired horses. Tim remains a top trainer in Northern California.

A Gonzaga Prep graduate, Ray McCanna was a second-team All-Big Conference free safety for the University of Idaho football team. In 1987, when Tim, who had won four Playfair titles, moved on to Emerald Downs, the new Seattle area-track, Dan McCanna led the Playfair trainers. Ray, in his debut, finished sixth and ranked among the leaders in each of the next three seasons with a second-place finish in 1989.

From 1987-93, racing at all three Washington tracks, he saddled 157 winners from 1,157 starters. Then he left the track for the oil business. Later, he and a partner created Clean Concepts, a corporation that produces an industrial cleaning product with international distribution.

Ray, as a horse owner, individually and with various partners, campaigned horses that earned close to a million dollars. His best runners included three-time Washington champion Queenledo, Marilyn’s Smile and the distance runner, Shadrack.

McCanna is survived by his father, his brothers and their sister, Kerri Ames, the principal at Central Valley High School. A Spokane memorial service has been scheduled for Oct. 28.